The present invention relates to oxygen absorbents. More particularly, the present invention relates to novel oxygen absorbents comprising as a main ingredient a 1,2-glycol, glycerine or sugar alcohol.
The term "oxygen absorbent" as used throughout the specification refers primarily to "composition having an oxygen absorbing action" (oxygen absorbent composition) but is sometimes used to mean "package of a composition having an oxygen absorbing action".
As a technique for preservation of foodstuffs or the like, oxygen absorbents are used. This technique is used to prevent oxidation of foodstuffs or the like and growth, proliferation, etc. of bacteria or mildew by allowing foodstuffs or the like and oxygen absorbents to be present in a sealed bag or sealed container having a gas barrier property (hereafter sometimes simply referred to as a "sealed container" or a "container") thereby to render the sealed system substantially an oxygen-free state. The technique has been widely used for preservation of foodstuffs, etc.
Oxygen absorbents mainly composed of iron powders have been hitherto used because of their ability of absorbing oxygen, easy handling, safety, costs, etc.
In the case of, for example, packaged food, the package is applied to a metal detector after sealing food in a packaging bag to examine if it is contaminated with foreign matter.
However, oxygen absorbents mainly composed of iron powders are detected with the metal detector, as a matter of course. It was thus impossible to apply a metal detector to packaged food sealed together with such oxygen absorbents.
In view of the problem involved in the prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide oxygen absorbents which are not detected with a metal detector.